Our Town Downtown - December 5, 2019

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The local paper for Downtown WOMEN’S WORK AT MOMA

◄ CITY ARTS, P.12

COPING WITH A NEW CRIME PATTERN LAW ENFORCEMENT As the media looked on last month, Michael Bloomberg filed for the Arizona Democratic presidential primary. Photo: Courtesy mikebloomberg2020 via Twitter

BLOOMBERG’S UNFORCED ERROR PUBLIC EYE

The former mayor is catching heat for his plan to limit the coverage of his presidential campaign by the journalists who work for him BY JOHN FRIEDMAN

Not long after billionaire and former mayor Michael Bloomberg entered the White House sweepstakes, Bloomberg News’s top editor, John Micklethwait, made a stunning announcement. He declared that the news entity, a unit of the par-

An attack on an Upper West Side resident spotlights robberies by groups of young teens that have become an issue throughout Manhattan BY EMILY HIGGINBOTHAM

Robberies have been on the rise this year on the Upper

West Side, and police are now dealing with a common culprit for these crimes: groups of young teens. Deputy Inspector Timothy Malin of the New York Police Department’s 20th precinct said it’s a recent phenomenon that’s become an issue in neighborhoods all over Manhattan. “I don’t know specifically

what is driving it,” Malin said in an interview this week. In the 20th precinct, groups of up to 10 teenagers, typically ages 13 to 16, will gang up on another teen and take their electronics. These incidents have typically occurred after school or in the early evening hours between 6 and 8 p.m.

5-11 2019

INSIDE

SUNSCREEN IS FOR WINTER, TOO Skin cancer is a year-round risk. What you need to know. p. 2

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A BUSWAY FOR 125TH STREET?

ent Bloomberg company, would cover his boss’s campaign, including policies, polls and other day-to-day aspects, but it would not scrutinize Bloomberg himself and would keep its hands off his charitable work, business practices and family. The politics-only plan would extend to the other Democratic candidates as well This proclamation, which flies in the face of traditional journalistic practice for covering a politician, never mind a candidate for president, prompted a swift and

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WEEK OF DECEMBER

Borough President Gale Brewer pushes DOT for better service for uptown riders. p. 18

THE TEMPTATION OF OLD NAVY

Proximity is destiny for the new UES superstore. p. 8

TEENS TAKE CHARGE AT BEACON 20th Precinct Commander Timothy Malin addresses community residents at a meeting on Oct. 28. Photo: Courtesy of 20th Precinct via Twitter

Students walk out to advocate for more integration in NYC’s public high schools. p. 6

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SPRING ARTS PREVIEW

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Restaurant Ratings 14 Business 16 Real Estate 17 15 Minutes 21

FOR HIM, SETTLING SMALL CLAIMS IS A BIG DEAL

presided over Arbitration Man has three decades. for informal hearings about it He’s now blogging BY RICHARD KHAVKINE

is the common Arbitration Man their jurist. least folks’ hero. Or at Man has For 30 years, Arbitration court office of the civil few sat in a satellite Centre St. every building at 111 New Yorkers’ weeks and absorbed dry cleaning, burned lost accountings of fender benders, lousy paint jobs, and the like. And security deposits then he’s decided. Arbitration Man, About a year ago, so to not afwho requested anonymity started docuhe fect future proceedings, two dozen of what menting about compelling cases considers his most blog. in an eponymous about it because “I decided to write the stories but in a I was interested about it not from wanted to write from view but rather lawyer’s point of said Arbitration a lay point of view,” lawyer since 1961. Man, a practicing what’s at issue He first writes about post, renders separate a in and then, how he arrived his decision, detailing Visitors to the blog at his conclusion. their opinions. often weigh in with get a rap going. I to “I really want unthey whether really want to know and why I did it,” I did derstood what don’t know how to he said. “Most people ... I’d like my cases the judge thinks. and also my trereflect my personalitythe law.” for mendous respect 80, went into indiArbitration Man, suc in 1985, settling vidual practice

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MANHATTAN'S APARTMENT BOOM, > PROPERTY, P.20

2015

In Brief MORE HELP FOR SMALL BUSINESS

The effort to help small seems to businesses in the city be gathering steam. Two city councilmembers, Robert Margaret Chin and Cornegy, have introduced create legislation that wouldSmall a new “Office of the within Business Advocate” of Small the city’s Department Business Services. Chin The new post, which have up told us she’d like to would and running this year, for serve as an ombudsman city small businesses within them clear government, helping to get through the bureaucracy things done. Perhaps even more also importantly, the ombudsman and number will tally the type small business of complaints by taken in actions the owners, policy response, and somefor ways to recommendations If done well, begin to fix things. report would the ombudsman’s quantitative give us the first with taste of what’s wrong the city, an small businesses in towards important first step problem. the xing fi of deformality for To really make a difference, process is a mere complete their will have to to are the work course, the advocaterising rents, precinct, but chances-- thanks to a velopers looking find a way to tackle business’ is being done legally of after-hours projects quickly. their own hours,” which remain many While Chin “They pick out boom in the number throughout lives on who problem. Angelo, vexing most said Mildred construction permits gauge what Buildings one of the Ruppert said it’s too early tocould have the 19th floor in The Department of the city. number three years, the Houses on 92nd Street between role the advocate She on the Over the past is handing out a record work perThird avenues. permits, there, more information of Second and an ongoing all-hours number of after-hours bad thing. of after-hours work the city’s Dept. problem can’t be a said there’s with the mits granted by nearby where according to new data jumped 30 percent, This step, combinedBorough construction project noise Buildings has data provided in workers constantly make efforts by Manhattan to mediate BY DANIEL FITZSIMMONS according to DOB of Informacement from trucks. President Gale Brewer offer response to a Freedom classifies transferring they want. They knows the the rent renewal process, request. The city They 6 “They do whatever Every New Yorker clang, tion Act tangible signs go as they please. work between early, and some come metal-on-metal can construction any small sound: the or on the weekend, have no respect.” the piercing of progress. For many can’t come p.m. and 7 a.m., the hollow boom, issuance of these business owners, that moving in reverse. as after-hours. The increased beeps of a truck has generto a correspond and you soon enough. variances has led at the alarm clock The surge in permits

SLEEPS, THANKS TO THE CITY THAT NEVER UCTION A BOOM IN LATE-NIGHT CONSTR NEWS

A glance it: it’s the middle can hardly believe yet construction of the night, and carries on full-tilt. your local police or You can call 311

Newscheck

for dollars in fees ated millions of and left some resithe city agency, that the application dents convinced

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